About

Khalida Haque is an integratively trained counselling psychotherapist and clinical supervisor. She currently works in independent practice, as a Counselling Services Manager in Schools, a ‘Caring Dads’ facilitator and a freelance writer. Her counselling experience is extensive and varied, having worked at and with various organisations: Nour-DV, Grief Encounter, Woman’s Trust, Age Concern (now Age UK), Terence Higgins Trust, Nafas BDP, Sanibel Counselling Centre, NZF, Solace (for revert sisters in difficulty), Muslim Youth Helpline (MYH), Muslim Community Helpline and Helping Households Under Great Stress (HHUGS). Khalida is also founding director of Khair Therapeutic Services CIC

Khalida loves writing and sees it along with other forms of creative and artistic pursuits as avenues of expression and release. She aims to push herself outside of her comfort zone, every now and again, as she knows that that is where true growth and discovery lies, bi’idhnillah (by God’s leave). And she feels extremely privileged, honoured as well as blessed to be doing the work she does, alhamdulillah (All praise and thanks belong to God). She believes in seeing this life as a journey and not a competition and adores seeing her sisters – in particular but all human beings – find themselves and thrive. Khalida has been married to Shahnawaz Haque (a psychoanalytically trained, Islam-based Psychotherapist) for over twenty years now and together they have a home containing three children and two cats – and the odd house guest.

Brooke Benoit is a writer and the Content Director for SISTERS Magazine, as well as the founder and editor of the Fitra Journal – A Muslim Homeschool Quarterly, and a writing workshop facilitator. She has kept personal journals for three decades and loves the transformational process writing can produce. She is also a visual artist, proud to be among the ranks of many fine artists who have dropped out from the San Francisco Art Institute. Currently, Brooke enjoys dabbling in photography, jewelry making and conceptual arts. She is also a rabid lover of handmade things, Allah’s immense and fascinating creations in nature, and recently Morocco opened Brooke’s black and white photography loving heart to the magnificent world of color.

Long before coming to SISTER Magazine, Brooke facilitated therapeutic art workshops for children, and then eventually ran an entire arts and crafts department within the unschooling-school in her home with her own seven children. Recently Brooke has realized her ultimate joy of aiding other artists and writers to find their own voice and expression through art and writing.